'It Was Gay Liberation': Photos From Sydney’s Queer Underground in the 70s

It’s been 50 years since the start of the 70s. Back then, the war in Vietnam and a rise in hippy-power through the late 60s had people looking for a change: a new social landscape and a new cultural one. In Australia, it might have also meant a moment of calm. What followed was a boom of creative expression, changing ideals and a general atmosphere to push the world towards something better.

A community in Australia, still heavily stigmatised but guided by liberation, started unravelling in the undergrounds of Sydney. The men wore make-up, the women wore suits, the parties were wild and the subversion of culture thrived against the grey sensibilities of the rest of the world. They were, of course, the queers.

“It was gay liberation in the 70s. People were liberating themselves from the negative attitudes about homosexuality, which was held by society at large,” photographer, William Yang, tells VICE.

“Gay liberation was about liberating ourselves from those attitudes. I came out as a gay person in the 70s. But I never consciously came out. I felt I was swept out by events at the time.”

William Yang was there. A young 20-something with a camera who thought himself to be a student architect, then a dropout, a failed playwright and then a stand-in photographer for acting portfolios.

The latter opened the door for where he is today: A world-renowned multifaceted artist who has showcased his works around Australia and the globe, known for his intimate portrayals of queer life, the 80s AIDs epidemic and his own Chinese-Australian experience.

“It was harder to photograph in those days because people weren't out. People didn't want to appear in newspapers, because they might lose their jobs if they were [for example] teachers,” he says.

“So it was all a kind of delicate balance. But the thing about the 70s was people were finding themselves. Gay people were becoming visible. To our surprise, there were many other gay people in the city.”

Yang began his career – much like young photographers do these days – by taking photos of friends at parties. Those photos were later published in the social sections of newspapers and magazines. 

“I desperately wanted to show gay photographs, as many as I could. And so I guess, back then, I was pushing the envelope a bit,” he says.

“But, later, I had my detractors. And the argument was that these kinds of photographs shouldn't be shown in public institutions.”

Little did he know that 50 years later much of his work would become time capsules of a historically significant moment. The world's perceptions of the queer community would be changing astronomically. It all culminated in one of his first shows, 1977’s Sydneyphiles, which re-emerged at the State Library of New South Wales under the same name during this year’s Sydney World Pride. 

“The LGBT community is very well documented now, but back then it wasn't,” he says.

“I was just photographing the people I knew, and my friends, my own community. Not very many photographers were recording their own community in the 70s.” 

“So now the photographs are valuable in that they are rare…and you can see the formation of our community.”

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